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| FAIRYTALE-Lovely People (Like You And Me)/Guess I Was Dreaming U.S. London 45-LON-20032 1967 |
Warrington, U.K. 60's psych pop quartet The Fairytale had just two singles released in Britain: "Guess I Was Dreaming" b/w "Run And Hide" (Decca F12644 August 1967) and "Lovely People" b/w "Listen To Mary Cry" (Decca F 12665 September 1967). Curiously London records in the U.S. decided to marry "Lovely People (Like You And Me)" (as it was titled in America) with "Guess I Was Dreaming" on the B-side. They also decided to drop "The" from the band's name and simply call them "Fairytale". This interesting single was launched in November 1967 where it remained in the obscurity from whence it came and as a result is fairly rare.
My introduction to The Fairytale came in the Summer of 1986 when I purchased the absolutely earth shattering See For Miles comp LP of Decca/Deram pop psych 45's "The British Psychedelic Trip 1966-1969" where they were on the front sleeve in all their psychedelic finery (see photo below) with the phased psych pop tune "Run And Hide".
"Guess I Was Dreaming" has long been my favorite of the band's tracks. It's almost sinister starting out with a faint drum/bass that grows in descending volume before being met with a phlanged piano. The lyrics are full of darkness and paranoia: "All week, no sleep waiting for the man to come....Here he comes walking through my mind, in so many colors making me blind, a one eyed midget by his side...". All delivered with an almost martial/military march beat behind the phlanged piano notes. The number was later covered by The Kingsmen (of "Louie Louie" fame) on their May 1968 single on the flip of their version of Skip Bifferty's "On Love". You can read all about that here.
"Lovely People (Like You And Me)" is an almost fey period piece with lyrics espousing the virtues of the beautiful people (or in this case "the lovely people"). There's a cynical tone to all of it's flower power waif message though: "People hanging around you like mist on a morning lake, focus your eyes upon them don't let them slip away. The world is out to make you one of it's living dead so lift your head up slowly and reach out for the morning sun". "Lovely People" was produced by Vic Smith, who would rechristen himself Vic Coppersmith-Heaven and go on to produce the Jam.
Both tracks are available on a host of CD /LP compilations. "Lovely People" is on Rubble Volume Six "The Clouds Have Groovy Faces" and "Guess I Was Dreaming" was on the Deram/Decca comp "The Psychedelic Scene". Both songs are available on streaming as well.
Here "Lovely People":
Hear "Guess I Was Dreaming":
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